All characters depicted or mentioned in this story are the trademarks and/or copyrights of their respective holders, except for those that aren't. Any resemblance to actual people, alive or deceased, is coincidental, etc., etc. Geez, it's just a story, guys. Don't get too uptight over it...
PRELUDE:
In cosmic scales, the planet Cybertron is a wholly insignificant sphere. Barely visible against the darkness of space, it is quickly eclipsed by the spectacle of the stars. Its own star, if it had one, has long been forgotten, for the planet hurls through space as an orphan. On rare occasions it passes through a solar system, leaving chaos in its wake as it disrupts and shatters moons and planets. Most often, though, it travels harmlessly, content in its seeming insignificance.
Only when the planet is seen from close up that its uniqueness becomes clear, for Cybertron is a planet entirely made of metal. Though there are no oceans, no vegetation, no signs of organic life, Cybertron lives. From the towering spires reaching up from its surface, through the numerous subterranean layers, down indeed to the core itself, the planet resonates with life, in an unending variety of forms and colors. For Cybertron is the home of the Transformers -- an ancient race of robots, each able to change his shape into different forms.
The Transformers are at war. Some call themselves Decepticons, and seek a life of conquest and expansion, first with Cybertron itself, then with the rest of the universe. Others call themselves Autobots, and devote themselves to stopping the Decepticon plans. The few who are unallied with either group often find themselves trapped between the conflicts of the two. Most do not remain neutral for long, by choice or by fate.
Sideswipe nudged the dial on the camera slightly, then smiled to himself. "Perfect," he said, "I've got the Decepticons dead to sights."
"Chill, man," Jazz cut in, placing a warning hand on Sideswipe's shoulder. "This is surveillance, remember?"
"I know, I know," came the muttered reply. "I just hate to sit here and play spybot when I could be bending fenders instead."
Jazz suppressed a sigh. He shared similar feelings, but Prime's orders made sense. "The two of us, against the Constructicons? Even with Cosmos on standby that's not a fight I want to be in. Stop being silly and keep shooting pictures, okay?" Without waiting for a reply, he returned to the readouts on the recorder.
Sideswipe also resumed his task, carefully aiming the camera at everything below. Their equipment captured much more than just sights and sounds, but its narrow focus required an operator to point it in the right direction. The two Transformers were working in a large crater near Cybertron's southern pole, huddled on a small ledge halfway up one side of the wall. They remained undetected, nearly invisible in the shadows while the glaring blue-white light of a nearby sun lanced overhead.
Several hundred meters away, in the bottom of the bowl, six lime-green humanoid robots were busy assembling a towering metal framework of some kind. They were the Constructicons, among the best engineers and architects in the Decepticon army, and so named because their vehicle forms were modelled after Earth construction vehicles. Nearby stood the blue form of Soundwave, silent and immobile, who watched their activities with his usual distanced interest.
The metal pole slammed into the parched ground of Ariza with a loud thud. Wiping his brow with the back of his hand, Tor wheezed, "That's the last one, Rob. Isn't it?"
Rob glanced up from his handheld computer. "Yes it is, Tor. I still need some time to go over these calculations, though."
Tor looked up at the completed structure, and a glint of sunlight off one of the rods made him wince. To him, it was just six steel shafts in a circle, wired to a small black box, but he knew better than to try and understand one of Rob's inventions. "Well, the sooner we get started, the sooner we can go home. Being out in the middle of nowhere is not my idea of a good time."
Rob smiled slightly. "Why don't you join the others?"
"Forget it! Bo's still mad at me after last night. At least here I can get some rest."
Rob shrugged and returned to his work. Tor began to look for a nice flat area to work on his tan.
Scrapper realized that he was crankier than usual, but he didn't care. He hated this assignment; on the rare occassions when Cybertron passed close enough to a suitable star, the Constructicons dropped whatever they were doing and set up a receiver to capture the gamma and X rays emitted. He questioned the value of such efforts, certain that the waste of time and energy involved wasn't worth the Energon retrieved. He couldn't even get the task delegated to other Decepticons, as Hook's overblown ego refused to consider such a possibility. And with Soundwave nearby, he had to watch his words -- anything he said can and will be used against him. Berating the other Constructicons became the only way to vent his anger.
"Mixmaster! Aren't you finished yet?"
"Of course, of course!", came the maniacal reply, almost a laugh. "I'm just refining the--"
"We're wasting enough time! If it's ready, apply it!"
Without a word, Mixmaster doubled over and transformed into a cement truck, his vehicle mode. A copper-colored liquid began to flow from the rear nozzle, which he directed to the parabolic dish on top of the structure. Everything touched by the spray instantly gleamed a dull brown, and Mixmaster adjusted his position and his nozzle to quickly coat the entire surface.
Scrapper watched in silence, his faceplate an unreadable mask for the frustration he felt. He turned to see Long Haul and Bonecrusher as they attached the power conduits from the dish to a nearby generator, which Hook was adjusting for the fifth time this cycle. Scavenger appeared to be working on the motor at the base of the tower, but Scrapper suspected that he was just avoiding work. Still, there wasn't much else for him to do on this assignment, so Scrapper ignored it.
Rob looked around. "Are we all set?"
There were quiet nods all around. The seven were standing in the center of the ring of pillars, along with the aircar. Six pairs of eyes watched the young man eagerly. The sky was almost dark now; the setting sun covered the flat plains in a dusty orange.
"All right." Rob paused for dramatic effect, then shouted, "Here goes!"
He closed the contact. There was a brief flash, as each of the metal poles flared for an instant, then stopped. It ended in a blink.
Tor broke the silence. "Did it work?"
Rob checked his wristband for a second, then responded. "It worked fine. We're now in a new universe."
Boo looked around, a puzzled expression on her face. "I don't see anything different."
"Well, Boo, the reason we came to this planet in the first place is because it has the same location and the same orbit in both universes. But almost everything else is different."
Ono pointed. "Look!" All turned at once at her discovery. There was a new planet in the solar system, one that was not in their reality, and proof that the experiment succeeded. "Way to go, Rob," Tor said, lightly patting his shoulder in affection.
"Can we take a closer look?"
"Can't see why not," Rob replied, then added, "It'll be fun."
Sideswipe watched through the camera as the parabolic dish slowly began to rotate. He turned to Jazz and said, "I think they're about to start." Jazz nodded once in reply, then flicked several switches on the recorder.
Scrapper braced himself, then walked up to Soundwave. Keeping his voice in check, he said, "We're ready for you now."
The blue robot spoke in his monotonic voice, "Yes. It is time to produce Energon cubes." He followed Scrapper towards the tower, which was finally finishing its rotation towards the sun. Once they reached the base, Soundwave turned so that it was behind him, whereupon a small panel in his back opened up, revealing an access hatch. Scavenger and Bonecrusher quickly attached a thick cable to it, while Hook began pressing buttons on the generator's control panel.
Scrapper grudgingly allowed himself to enjoy the proceedings. Normally, Soundwave would produce empty Energon shells, and the X rays and gamma rays from the receptor would be channelled into them. They would then be compressed into Energon cubes, a highly concentrated form that could be used for a variety of purposes. This time, however, Soundwave would take the captured energy directly, place it into shells while they were still within his body, then emit the filled cube. If the scheme worked, it might increase the cubes' capacity and speed up the process. If it didn't, Soundwave could suffer a painful, possibly permanent, injury. Either way was fine with Scrapper.
"Will ya look at that!" Sideswipe exclaimed. He was watching pre-filled Energon cubes coming out of Soundwave's chest, and the sight was a genuine surprise. As he readjusted the camera for a closer view, he continued, "Are you getting all this, Jazz?"
"Yeah, keep it up! Accordin' to the recorder, those new cubes got twelve percent more storage density than the old ones!"
Sideswipe frowned. The two warring factions were closely balanced to the point where even the smallest advantage was pressed for any benefits it could yield. "I hope the guys in the lab can duplicate this stuff, for our sakes. Good thing we're out here after all."
Soundwave remained immobile and silent as the process continued. He was not one for needless chatter, and certainly felt no need to talk to any of the Constructicons. The Energon was starting to be loaded by the others into Long Haul's dump truck mode, but the cubes were coming faster than they could be loaded, and a small pile began to build. Soundwave turned his attention elsewhere. He had quickly realized that the dish could also be used as an amplifier for his reception abilities, and so he started a wide-spectrum scan. Perhaps he might find some long-range Autobot transmissions; Megatron would certainly reward him for that.
A few pings showed up, but Soundwave dismissed them as minute radar echoes, probably interstellar radio waves bouncing off debris. He turned his focus down the band, and immediately picked up something more distinct -- voices!
"Autobot intruders!" he announced, pointing towards the far wall of the canyon that was beneath the sun. The Constructicons turned, those without polarizing lenses using their hands as shade from the bright light. Though barely visible in the shadows, two figures could be seen scurrying on a small ledge.
That was enough for Bonecrusher. He reached down and quickly produced a rocket launcher from his interdimensional storage. In one motion, he lifted it to his shoulder, aimed, and fired.
Jazz threw himself forward, clutching the recorder with one hand even as the rocket exploded. Sideswipe's warning was fast enough, but he still felt the blast -- a senses-shattering explosion, a momentary feeling of weightlessness, then tumbling down the metal mountain. His vision twirling out of control, he still managed to point himself face downward and transform.
As a white Porsche racing car, Jazz was now driving down the sloping metal wall, the recorder shoved into his passenger compartment. He could see Sideswipe to his left, transformed into a fiery red Lamborghini, also racing full speed down the steep wall. They could not stop, and the concave slope of the structure forced them down towards the Constructicons, who were already preparing to meet them at the crater floor.
He tried to raise Cosmos on the radio, but got the shrill static of an active jamming signal. Soundwave's work.
Rob could feel his excitement grow as they approached the planet. The aircar was not designed as a long-distance space vehicle, but since this new world was in the next outer orbit as Ariza, the journey only took a half-hour. There was no rush.
Next to him, little Ono was looking out of the cockpit in youthful, wide-eyed fascination. She was recording everything, as usual, and perhaps some new astronomical discoveries would be found when the information was analyzed. Rob, however, was an engineer; the distant stars were all so many pinpricks of light to him, and only the enigma of the grey planet held his interest.
Bort noticed it first. "L-l-look at it," he stammered, still a tad nervous. "The whole p-p-planet's made of metal!"
Bo, by his side, squinted slightly. "You're right! Rob, could it be a construct of some kind?"
"It'd be amazing if it was," he said. "Let's get a closer look."
More details of the planet below became evident as the explorers closed the distance. Parts of the surface were peeled open, exposing a grimy inner structure and the fading orange glimmers of a dying fire, perhaps from a planetary core. Towers and domes dotted other parts of the surface, and the abundance of dim light hinted at the possibility of inhabitants.
Though sorely tempted, caution finally prevailed in Rob's mind. "We better stay away from the lighted areas," he said. "If there's people here, we don't want to do anything that might disturb them." The others were silent in agreement, and the group turned for a darkened area near one of the poles. Only then did they descend even further; fortunately, the sun was high on this side, and the planet's features were clearly visible. There were more domes and structures and spires, but they were all dark and dusty with the weight of long disuse.
"I wonder why those buildings were abandoned," Ono asked.
"I wonder who lived here," Rob added.
"Well, I don't think it's very pretty," Boo said with the hint of a pout. "No flowers, or trees, or riv--"
A loud explosion sharply interrupted her. Everyone stopped in midair, and Tor yelled, "What was that?!"
"I don't know," Rob said, "but it didn't sound friendly."
Ono checked a readout on the aircar's computer screen. "It came from over there," she said, pointing towards the right.
"Surrender, Autobots!"
"Crash and burn, Decepticreep!" The cry was punctuated with a laser burst, which flew harmlessly high overhead. At least one of them was severely wounded.
Scrapper knew the demand was pointless -- those fools never know when to give up -- but revelled in it anyway, just to emphasize the futility of their situation. The two Autobots were clustered behind a pile of rubble, their backs to the sheer wall they had descended. Their position was easy to defend, however, and though the Constructicons had them surrounded, the Autobots' weapon fire kept them from closing in. Still, it wouldn't last much longer, for reinforcements were already summoned. When they arrive, the spies will be quickly captured, and "questioning" them back at headquarters should prove amusing.
He looked over his shoulder briefly and could barely make out Soundwave, who was still standing immobile by the tower on the other end of the bowl. The production of Energon cubes never stopped, and a substantial number was piling up next to him now. Scrapper wondered briefly if he should order Soundwave to release the Decepticons in his chest, to help take the Autobots that much quicker. But then he realized that would require a pause in the production of Energon, and even a minute reduction would be enough to invoke Megatron's wrath. It wasn't worth it.
Scrapper turned forward again; the Autobots were still sheltered behind their cover, and the stalemate hadn't changed. Then he caught a glimpse of movement, up over the rim of the bowl. Six black specks were flying through the air, silhouetted against the sun. Were these the reinforcements, preparing for a bombing run?
He reconfigured his optics for a magnified view, then refocused: five humanoid figures and a vehicle of some kind, none that he recognized. They were not helping in the attack and did not bore any Decepticon sigils, so he could only draw one conclusion. "More Autobots!" Scrapper cried, and began firing on the intruders, to be joined by Mixmaster and Long Haul.
Rob jerked the yolk suddenly and dodged the first burst. The second one hit Crunch, who plummeted instantly, hit the sloping metal wall, and rolled downhill in a tangle of arms and legs. As Boo broke formation and followed, Rob decided -- a fight between two unknown alien factions was one thing, but having his team shot at was another case all together. "Take them out!"
Tor didn't need encouragement. "Nobody does that to my buddy!" He landed, then hit the ground fist-first, shaking the Cybertronian surface with a thunderous jolt. Autobots and Decepticons alike stumbled and fell in the shock, while Tor quickly recovered and sprinted for the nearest attacker.
Three seconds later and he was by Hook's side, just as the Constructicon was beginning to regain his footing. A quick look at his foe left him surprised. "Holee-- Rob! These guys are robots! Like us!"
"Robots?" The excitement in Rob's voice was obvious. "Are you sure?"
"Sure as this guy's ugly." He took one step back as Hook stood upright. Tor was over two meters in height, taller than the average human, but the Constructicon's 3.5 meters dwarfed him. Masking his nervousness, Tor continued, "Betcha he ain't built as well as I am, though."
Before either robot could move, Bort landed on Hook's shoulders, his spindly blue arms and legs askew on Hook's head. "I-I-I'm warning you," he said. There was a quick shimmer, and Bort instantly turned into a set of thick banded cables, entwining Hook. "Don't make m-m-me hurt you." As Tor attacked, Hook snarled in reply, then lashed out and kicked the red robot away.
Bo, meantime, had landed and immediately disarmed Long Haul and Bonecrusher with her telekinetic powers. She was levatating the two in midair, out of harm's way, and admonished them. "Didn't you learn it's not nice to shoot at people?"
Scrapper was nearby, still maintaining suppressive weapon fire with Mixmaster and Long Haul to keep the Autobots from escaping. He stopped for a moment to turn and shoot at Bo instead. Hit in the back, she crumpled with a cry and dropped her two charges, but before they could move against her, she wobbled to her feet and took to the air.
Crunch had finally regained his senses with the aid of Boo, and the two ran out on the battlefield. The roar of rockets overhead caught their attention; a flying craft, black and purple, soared over the battlefield. Taking notice of Bo, erratically weaving through the air, it turned towards her and fired.
Boo acted first. She pointed her arms skyward, and a searing bolt of superheated air flowed from her hands and sliced towards the attacker. It banked suddenly to avoid the blast, shots firing wide. A moment later, Bo was engulfed in a soft green beam, and Rob turned the aircar to tow her to a safer part of the combat zone.
Astrotrain turned sharply, undaunted. His side door opened, sowing seeds of havoc in the robotic forms of Dirge and Blitzwing. The two Decepticons transformed an instant later into their jet modes, joining Astrotrain in an air-attack formation.
Scrapper yelled to them. "Keep the Autobots from escaping!" Now that the reinforcements were here, he no longer needed to maintain the holding action. "Constructicons, follow me!"
Across the field, Hook staggered as he tried to dodge Tor's blows, his arms still bound by Bort. Hook sidestepped one swing only to be hit by a second, which drove him to the ground face-first. With a broad grin, Tor declared, "All right, sleeping beauty, time for your nap!"
Before the blow struck, Mixmaster rammed into Tor in vehicle mode and sent him tumbling eighty meters away. As Hook continued to squirm, Mixmaster sprayed Bort with a clear liquid; Bort yelled as the acid hit, reflexively reverting back to his humanoid form. Hook angrily shrugged off the blue robot, then transformed into his vehicle mode and raced to join the other Constructicon vehicles.
Scrapper eagerly gave the expected order. "Constructicons, transform!"
Rob, circling overhead in the aircar, got a richly impressive view of the proceedings. Scrapper and Mixmaster were first, doubling over to raise twin pillars into the sky. Long Haul then drove into the air, shifting as he did, landing on top of the two. Hook followed, twisting in midair, coming to a rest on the growing structure with a loud clang. Scavenger and Bonecrusher were last, sprouting forearms, flying through the air as if suspended from strings. The two locked onto the shoulders of the golem simultaneously. Then from nowhere, a head arose: shielded red eyes, a sharply sculptured face, and an expression of arrogant superiority, announcing the arrival of the engine of chaos called Devastator.
Jazz could only manage a quick peek before being driven back by an exploding shell. Astrotrain had landed in his robot mode, and was working with Blitzwing's tank form to keep the Autobots pinned with long-distance artillery and laser fire. Overhead, Dirge circled ominously, occasionally strafing them. Their shielded position managed to negate most of the effects, but they were going nowhere.
"How's it looking out there?" Sideswipe asked with a small wheeze.
Jazz shook his head. "Not good, and gettin' worse." He knew that there was no point in being gentle. They were both wounded, although Sideswipe's condition was worse. In vehicle mode, they had enough speed to drive away, but neither of them had weapons in that form. Furthermore, the only exit was through a small gully at the other end of the bowl, and Soundwave and the receiver tower were in between. A run would be difficult at best. With Devastator, simply impossible. Jazz realized that the other robots had bought them some time, but it was now quickly diminishing.
Devastator stood still for a moment. Then, as if finally noticing the aircar overhead for the first time, he looked at it. "Die!" cried the voice, craggy and jagged like a landslide, and twin beams of concussive force shot out of Devastator's eyes.
Ono panicked, but Rob acted instantly. Though not blessed with robotic reflexes, he was fast enough, twisting the steering yolk and sending the aircar into a graceless twist around the attack. He quickly stabilized the craft and brought it towards the others, then noticed Ono watching in expectation. He smiled back, eyes twinkling.
"Well, we can play too! Orbots, unite!"
The five airborne robots suddenly worked a ballet of their own, growing in size and mass as they went. Boo and Bo turned and twisted, spiraling, doubling over, then connected with a resounding boom in Tor's shoulder sockets. An instant later, Crunch and Bort tucked themselves in, folding solid as they joined with the torso, forming legs. The aircar darted through a door in the chest; once inside, it rose upwards, the cockpit pivoting and separating in its own unseen dance, coming to a rest in the head.
"Ignition, Ono!" On Rob's command, her chest cracked open, and a connector extended, locking into its fitted slot on the panel before her. The screens were immediately lit in a blaze of neon, and the minds and bodies of the six robots were now one -- Mighty Orbot.
The natives of Cybertron were surprised at this spectacle. Combiner teams were relatively rare, and both Autobot and Decepticon factions kept close tabs on new developments in the field. An unallied robot gestalt was simply unheard of.
Mighty Orbot and Devastator stood facing each other, each at the ready. Of the two, Devastator was taller, but not by much; a quick glance would have identified the two combatants as the same size. One was an angry mountain of green and purple, a near-symmetrical tower of brutality. The other was a bright pillar of hope, red and orange and blue and yellow and gleaming metal, with a pose that spoke of assured confidence. The Orbot's face was frozen in a permanent smile, which only served to make the Decepticon angrier.
Devastator moved first, raising his right hand and firing the massive photon rifle which appeared in it. Mighty Orbot was faster, taking a half-step back and swinging his left arm up, where an oval blue shield materialized into existence to deflect the shot. Stepping forward again, he dematerialized the shield and pointed his right arm at Devastator, palm first. A triangular glow appeared, followed by a beam of neon green energy, which struck in the left shoulder.
Devastator staggered slightly, then charged forward with surprising speed. His rifle was gone, his right fist twisted behind for a powerful blow. Mighty Orbot assumed a defensive stance, but Devastator sucker-punched with a left hook, and his opponent crashed to the ground.
Jazz winced as Mighty Orbot fell; his hopes were raised when the two titans faced off, for if Devastator was defeated or delayed, maybe he and Sideswipe could make an escape. But now, his hopes sank as Devastator stood over the staggering stranger, locking his fists overhead for a hammer blow.
Devastator roared, ready to swing, when Mighty Orbot suddenly vanished. The cry died suddenly; Devastator glanced around, but could not see any sign of his foe. He fumbled through infrared, ultraviolet, radio, audio, and other sensors, but detected nothing. Long seconds passed.
Silently, Mighty Orbot appeared again behind Devastator. With the advantage of surprise, the former grabbed the latter and locked his arms. Devastator struggled in anger and defiance, stomping the ground and sending another seismic wave throughout the area. Soundwave staggered, Astrotrain fell, and some of the Energon cubes scattered slightly.
"Now!" Jazz yelled, and leaped out of their battered enclave. Sideswipe followed a second later, and the Autobots transformed into their vehicle modes. Tires screeching, they quickly darted past the recovering Astrotrain. Blitzwing quickly rotated and followed, lobbing high-explosive shells, but the two cars dodged them easily. Dirge went into a sharp banked turn and began to pursue, followed a moment later by Astrotrain in his shuttle mode.
Devastator heaved, then elbowed Mighty Orbot in the side, breaking free. The two separated, faced each other, then braced for another attack. The green giant tried a charge, but Mighty Orbot sidestepped it easily. Inside the head's control center, Rob and Ono worked with practiced ease at the controls. The other robot was stronger, but Rob knew that they had the advantage in agility. "Just keep away from him," he muttered.
Ono, still plugged into the system, pointed to the screen. "Rob! Those other robots are trying to escape!"
Rob quickly assessed the situation. "We've got to help them," he said. Ono nodded.
Outside, Devastator yelled again, his voice still rumbling. "Devastator will destroy you!" He charged once again, and this time Mighty Orbot leaped up, palms outstretched. Two blasts of cold leaped forth, hitting Dirge and Blitzwing, instantly encasing each in a sphere of ice. The jet immediately plummeted to the ground, whereupon the sphere instantly broke into a thousand shards. Dirge remained immobile and harmless, half-buried by the slush.
Sideswipe cheered. "All right! We have a chance after all!"
Jazz's enthusiasm was more tempered. "Don't be too eager yet!" He noticed the other was lagging behind, but couldn't do anything about it.
Unseen by the Autobots, Devastator had leaped towards Mighty Orbot at the same moment, tackling the other in the midsection. The two fell in a tumble, and the ground shuddered with their combined weight. As Ono and Rob struggled to free them, his wristband began to beep. He gave it a glance, then shouted, "Oh, no! We have to leave, fast!"
Mighty Orbot was immobile for a split second as his operators were distracted. Devastator seized the moment, throwing himself on top of Mighty Orbot and pinning him to the ground. He began to laugh, a hideous sound like two massive boulders rubbing together, then grabbed the Orbot by the shoulder and slammed his opponent's head against the ground. The control center shuddered violently, and Devastator's bellowing could be heard, screaming, "Die. Die!"
Soundwave had watched the proceedings with growing interest, recording all that happened without stopping the production of Energon. Though the Autobots were escaping, he had expected the other Decepticons to capture them first. Now, though, only Astrotrain was left, and it seemed unlikely that he could handle the two of them alone. A decision was made.
He stopped the circuits responsible for the manufacture of Energon cubes, making sure to step down the power diffusion breakers exactly, not wanting to risk a possibly fatal overload. It was a slow process, however, and by the time he finished, Jazz drove past the tower in a wide arc. Soundwave noticed that the other Autobot was barrelling straight towards him, so he assumed a defensive stance and brought forth his concussion blaster. His robot form was larger than the other's vehicle mode, and Soundwave was sure he could either stop the Autobot or delay him before Astrotrain arrived.
In the control room, Bo's stern voice cut in. "Can't this guy take 'No' for an answer?!" Outside, Mighty Orbot's chest immediately flared orange; an unseen force pushed, shoving Devastator off.
As the jade brute staggered to remain upright, Mighty Orbot climbed back on his feet. Devastator roared in anger, then acted on instinct alone and swung, right fist forward. Mighty Orbot sidestepped and pivoted with the blow, capturing Devastator's arm. Continuing the twist, he bent and released, throwing Devastator towards the far end of the crater. Without a glance, Mighty Orbot leaped skyward.
Sideswipe smiled to himself as he closed in on Soundwave. "Eat my dust!" he yelled, suddenly transforming into robot form. He came up running, then leaped into the air and fired his jet pack, flying in a steep arc over the surprised Decepticon. Almost as one, Soundwave and Sideswipe swung and shot at each other. Both missed, their bolts flying wide.
There was a small explosion as one of Sideswipe's shots hit an Energon cube. The cube ignited its neighbors, and another, immensely larger explosion shook the planet an instant later.
Devastator was thrown into the heart of the blast, but Mighty Orbot never noticed, already flying through the Cybertronian air when the explosion occurred. Buffeted by the shockwave, he recovered quickly, then looked back. All that was visible now was the canyon, overflowing with a white-hot flare, swallowing all other features in its bright, billowing immensity.
Rob did not have time to admire or even understand the sight. "Ariza, Ono! Full speed!" As she took the controls, he checked again on the readings from his wristband, tapped a nearby keyboard, then brought up a graphical display of arcs, tangents, and ellipses.
Tor asked, "Why the rush, Rob?"
Rob tapped a few more keys as he explained. "The planet of robots is not a part of this solar system. It's passing through, and its mass is starting to alter Ariza's orbit."
"So?"
"So, if the Ariza in this universe and the one in ours are out of sync, the dimensional shifter won't work, and we'll be trapped here!"
Boo asked the next question, the panic barely evident in her voice. "Can we still make it?"
"If we give it everything we got. C'mon!" Though Mighty Orbot flew faster than any one of them could alone, he knew that they were pressed for time.
Astrotrain was high overhead chasing the two Autobots when everything hit the turbine. The mysterious gestalt took off, Devastator flew by, one of the Autobots fired, and the explosion occurred. Though dashed to the ground far from the crater, he recovered rapidly. Certain he had lost the escaping spies, Astrotrain opted to follow the unknown robots instead, perhaps to gleam a clue about their identities. Pursuing them with a late start was difficult, but Astrotrain had a slight edge in speed.
They had just reached the outer atmosphere of a nearby planet when Astrotrain was finally within range. He noticed that the flying giant was just as he last saw it, still in its combined form. It did not appear to notice him; acting with the simplest of strategies, he fired.
His attack was accurate, but it went unanswered, which left him completely surprised. The battle with Devastator showed that the newcomer had a wide variety of weapons, and he had been prepared to dodge any response, counter any tactic. Instead, there was none -- the multicolored robot simply dove deeper into the atmosphere. Was there a base below?
Slightly paranoid, he ran a thorough sweep before continuing, but his sensors only told him what he had assumed. The planet was barren and had no signs of life, either mechanical or biological. Astrotrain closed in further, and fired again. He saw the giant shudder, but nothing more, and considered the possibilities. No attack, no base, no reinforcement, fleeing from a fight. The only conclusion remaining was that the intruder was injured, perhaps severely.
Astrotrain was elated. Depending on the extent of their damage, he might be able to capture two or three of them. That was sure to earn points with Megatron, especially after the damage they had inflicted back on Cybertron. Perhaps he could even hold off or follow the giant long enough for more Decepticons to arrive, and then help capture it intact. Driven by excitement, he closed once more, set his guns to maximum, and fired.
In one smooth motion, Mighty Orbot spun in midair, stood upright, and held out his arms. A multihued T-shaped glow appeared, then lashed out in a focused beam. Caught in the brunt of the beam, Astrotrain screamed, but it went unheard, as Mighty Orbot quickly resumed his downward flight. A charred form fell through the Ariza atmosphere and smashed into the ground far below.
Almost at ground level, Mighty Orbot quickly came apart, collapsing like a child's toy. As the aircar flew out of the chest doors, the arms and legs separated, and each Orbot turned, shrank, and unfolded back to their individual selves. As a whole, they darted for the ring of columns they left only several hours ago.
Rob leaped out of the aircar before it stopped and dashed for the switchbox. He spun around, a quick glance telling him that everyone was in the area of effect. No fanfare or posing now -- he threw the switch, and reality shimmered for an instant.
The Orbots stood in worried silence. Slowly, as if sharing their fears, Rob looked at his wristband, afraid to trust its readings. He looked again, tapped a few buttons, then faced the others. "We're home."
Tor summed it up thusly: "Whew."
Unnoticed by anyone, in the same spot one reality away, a small green spacecraft circled twice, then flew off.
Megatron, slumped on his throne, brooded in silence. He was alone in the main conference hall, cleared by his command. Drumming his fingers on the armrest, he tried to make sense of it all.
Over eight hundred cubes of Energon were in their hands, only to be destroyed in an instant. Blitzwing and Dirge, two of his more competent warriors, were severely injured, and would be out for at least ten Cybertronian days. Soundwave, his trusted lieutenant, needed a minimum of thirty, though Rumble and Ravage faired slightly better, partially protected by being in Soundwave's chest during the explosion. The Constructicons, a centerpiece of his assault forces, were burned enough to be almost unidentifiable. Their essential circuits were intact, fortunately, but the bodies will require massive repair and reconstruction, not to mention some time-consuming memory reorganization.
As difficult as this was, Astrotrain was the worst off. A Decepticon rescue crew found him in the bottom of a fifty-meter deep crater on a nearby planet. His outer form was melted into a shapeless blob, charred darker than the void of space. His insides fared little better, as only his basic personality and long-term memory storage were spared. Everything else was fused or destroyed, and he would have to be almost totally rebuilt from the chassis up. Even then, it will be a long time before he recovers, and Astrotrain will be forever plagued with random lapses of amnesia. As his short-term memory was slagged, he will have to watch the recordings to re-learn his role in the conflict. Assuming he wanted to see them.
Megatron growled, clutching the armrest tighter. The recordings salvaged from Soundwave were sufficent, but incomplete. Repeated examination showed no identifying marks on the unknown gestalt, and none of them were recognized Transformers of any side. Could this be a new Autobot strike force? The possibility was very real, and Megatron realized that he would have to revise his immediate plans just in case. The abilities those robots showed -- full-spectrum invisibility, telekinesis, temperature control, polymorphism, maybe more -- were formidable in themselves, but having them available in a combiner made for a truly dangerous foe. If they were Autobots, then the position of the Decepticons was in jeopardy.
A glance at the time strip on the wall brought a small smile to Megatron's face. Starscream was due to report any moment now on whether the Decepticons could duplicate those feats with one of their other gestalts. Whatever else Megatron thought of him, Starscream was admittedly one of the top scientists in the ranks. If the outcome was hopeful, then work will have to begin immediately. And if the prognosis was dim, then Megatron will have a perfect excuse and a target to vent his frustrations...
"...disappeared immediately when the human reached the box. I checked the area twice, but there was no trace of them. Then I came back to Autobase and filed my report."
There was a nod. "Is there anything else you want to mention, Cosmos?"
"No, Prime. I've told you everything."
"Thank you. If you do have anything else, let me know immediately."
"I will. Cosmos out."
Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots, watched the green and yellow robot's image wink off the display. He turned away from Teletran 1, then paced out of the Ark's main bay into the hazy Earth sun, deep in thought.
He had to admit that it was mostly luck that the Autobots did so well on this assignment. Jazz and Sideswipe escaped with relatively minor injuries, though the latter would require a few days' rest to let his injuries heal. Prime had no qualms about that, and left him to Ratchet's tender mercies. Meanwhile, Jazz had dropped off the recordings on the new Energon-storage process, and the initial prognosis for duplicating the process were hopeful.
What puzzled Optimus the most were the sightings of the neutral robots. They were clearly not Decepticons, what with destroying an energy tower, aiding Jazz and Sideswipe in their escape, and severely injuring numerous Decepticons --Devastator, even! Prime was glad that Cosmos was prudent enough to only observe the stranger and do nothing more. The report of the attack on Astrotrain made Prime wince, even if it was one of "the enemy". To lose one of his troops like that was a risk he always tried to avoid.
But they were not Autobots either. If only that team was on their side; their abilities and skills would make a major difference in the Cybertronian war. The idea of a robot/human gestalt alone was appealing to Prime, if only because it was such a perfect example of how their two races could work together. But from Cosmos' report, it seemed evident that they would not be back any time soon. Perhaps they were time travellers from the future. That could explain their advanced level of technology...
Back in their home on Earth, the Orbots spent an animated evening talking about all they had seen and experienced. Though another trip to that reality was no longer possible, the idea of an entire planet populated with robots had everyone excited. Bo, true to form, teased Tor about a world full of "handsome hunks of metal men" for her to choose from. Ono and Bort speculated on what the planet's society must be like. Boo shared in the talks, but her words were tinged with sadness at how dull and dark the world looked. Crunch sat quietly, listening with his usual lack of comprehension, content to idly nibble on a few chunks of iron ore.
In his nearby bedroom, Rob was isolated from the sounds of their talk, but could not rest. He tumbled and turned in his sleep, always haunted. He and the Orbots had constantly fought against Umbra and its evil schemes, yet in their trip to another reality, he had engaged in a fight and inflicted heavy damage, maybe even killed. Though they were robots, they were also sentient, also alive.
He had no knowledge of their society, their history, their causes. For all he knew, the two robots they aided were dangerous renegades, about to be captured before the Orbots arrived. He hadn't even tried communicating with them, though some of the sounds made by the large green robot did not seem very friendly. Then there was the massive explosion; was that his doing? Yet the final assault on their pursuer bothered him the most. He had struck back because they were almost out of time, and Mighty Orbot couldn't separate while under attack. But was there another way, an alternative he overlooked?
The Orbots were convinced that their opponents were evil, that their cause was just. After all, Tor had argued, there were ten of them firing on those other two, who were helpless. Rob tried to accept that, but could not be completely convinced; the doubts continued to plague him. He couldn't be SURE.
And now, he could never find out...
THE END
For the record, all of the astronomy physics come from What If The Moon Didn't Exist?, which covers all sorts of hypothetical Earth scenarios in great detail. The book's a bit dry, but it's not bad.
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